Höranalyse

Musical auditory analysis remains a niche field. Publications and current contributions to the discourse still suffer from an excessive focus on the score and compositional techniques, a legacy of Adorno’s ideal of “co-composing” through listening. To this day, the notion from early serialism that a work can be fully deciphered from its score continues to exert an influence. These two myths are examined and debunked here. An alternative approach to analysis is developed, one based solely on the perception of music. In doing so, the nature of the analyzing subject is clarified, along with its possibilities and limitations.
Furthermore, the relationship between subject and piece is examined, with an answer to the question of how and where, between the two, the analysis actually takes place. A contemporary listening analysis also makes use of newly available presentation techniques: sound clips are embedded in a flowing text within the browser, while videos and illustrations aid in a better understanding of the text. Under these conditions, new analytical tools are created and tested. These incorporate the possibilities of collective intelligence, which can become an integral part of the discourse. The focus on perception has consequences for both the audience and the composers: listening habits and influences are revealed and incorporated into the experience of pieces and recordings. This work attempts to take a major step toward establishing this often-underestimated activity of auditory perception.

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